2023 Ducati Monster SP Is a Featherweight Wheelie Rippin’ Machine and We Love It
The new Monster SP in its natural state — on its back wheel.Photo: Ducati
The Ducati Monster got a super comprehensive overhaul for the 2022 model year, dropping a bunch of weight and bailing on its signature trellis frame. Overall, it was a great bike, but it deserved a true performance version, and now, for 2023, Ducati is giving it just that with the SP model, which it announced on Thursday.
The SP model is notable because not only does it look way cooler than the normal Monster, but it also sheds even more weight – around 4.4 pounds, which sounds kind of meh until you remember that this bike was already a featherweight at just 366 lbs, dry weight.
Even better, the weight savings generally come from parts that will add other benefits, like a fully adjustable Ohlins suspension, a much-ruder-than-standard Termignoni exhaust system, and some especially handsome Brembo Stylema brake calipers up front. The rest of the savings comes from the switch to a lithium-ion battery.
Ducati World Première 2023 Episode 2 | Monster SP | Mad for fun
Other tweaks include a wild new paint job, a red seat (which, to be honest, I could live without), carbon tips on the aforementioned Termignoni cans, and cool little red accents on the black-finished wheels. It’s not groundbreaking, but other motorcyclists aren’t likely to mistake it for a more plebian Monster, and that’s kind of the point, right?
The 2023 Monster SP is set to hit dealers in the US and Canada in February of 2023 with a starting price of $15,595 in American freedom units and $18,295 in Canadian loonies (or half as many toonies). Sure, that’s not cheap, but Ducatis never really are, and if you want to rip dank Italian nooners on a lightweight naked bike, that’s just the price of admission, bud.
